


what comes after

by verivala



Series: Grindeldore prompt fills [19]
Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Gay Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Kissing, M/M, Prompt Fill, Reconciliation, Reunions, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-23
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-11-04 09:09:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17895629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/verivala/pseuds/verivala
Summary: Prompt: "You meant too much to me"





	what comes after

Dumbledore smiled as he watched Harry fading from view. What a fine young man he had become. Much wiser and kinder than he had ever been. Taking one last look around the station, Dumbledore turned and started to make his way towards the train. 

It was time for him to move on.

“Albus.”

Dumbledore stopped on his tracks. That voice- he had not heard it in years. Slowly, his hands shaking, he turned around and there he was; Gellert Grindelwald, old and wearing ragged robes, holding little of his former grace in his features. But to Albus, he was still the most handsome man he had ever seen.

Albus tried to smile, but it felt fragile on his lips. Clearing his throat, he said, “Gellert.”

Gellert approached him slowly, as if unsure of his welcome. When he was standing in front of Albus, he raised his hand but stopped before he could touch him. With a shaking hand, Dumbledore reached to take it and used it to pull him closer. Having been given permission, Gellert reached for Albus’ face with his free hand and pressed their foreheads together. 

Tears tracked their way down Albus’ cheek.

“Es tut mir Leid,” Gellert whispered, his breath brushing against Albus’ lips.  

Shaking his head, Albus reached for his hand and laid his own across it. “You didn’t tell him,” he stated softly.

Gellert shook his head, causing his long locks to brush against Albus’ cheek. “No, he had no right to it. And neither did we.”

Somewhat astonished, Albus blinked. “You truly have changed.”

“I’ve had a lot of time to think,” Gellert huffed. He raised his other hand to cup Albus face in his hands. He roamed his eyes across his face, cataloguing all the differences age had wrought on his beloved’s face.

Caressing Albus’ cheeks with his thumbs, he asked softly, “Why did you never come to see me?”

Dumbledore smiled sadly. “I didn’t trust myself. You meant too much to me. I do not know if I could have left you there if I had come to visit you.”

“You have always been stronger than you think you are, my dear,” Gellert said and pecked him on the lips.

Albus’ smile turned into a genuine one. He wound his arms behind Gellert’s neck and pulled him into a proper kiss. The kiss was sweet and not very exciting - they were old men after all - and tasted of a long-ago summer and love.

When Albus opened his eyes, it was to the Gellert as he had first met him. He looked down on his own body and saw that it had transformed as well. He yelped as Gellert picked him up and spun them around. Gellert laughed, and it was the same joyous sound that had first made Albus fall in love with him. Albus joined him. It was freest he had felt in decades.

Eventually, Gellert put him down, but he did not let go. They stood embracing for a moment longer before Albus withdrew, and smiling, said, “I think it’s time that we went, don’t you?”

Gellert looked apprehensively at the train and squeezed him closer. “Went where?”

Albus kissed him on the cheek and taking his hand, started to lead him towards it. “I guess we’ll find out together, won’t we?” he asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

Laughing once more, Gellert followed him.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment if you liked it <3
> 
> My Tumblr: bloodtroth


End file.
